Swami Purnamritananda Puri, General Secretary, Mata Amritanandamayi Math
Dr. Mitali Mukherji, Senior Principal Scientist and Programme
Director, Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology,
Shri Sankara Chaitanya, Medical Director, Amrita School of Ayurveda,
Dr. M.R. Vasudevan Nampoothiri, Principal, Amrita School of Ayurveda,
Delegates attending the Seminar,
Dear Teachers, Priyappetta Vidyarthikale,
Sahodaree Sahodaranmare,
Ellavarkkum Ente Namaskaram.
It gives me great joy to inaugurate ‘Prajnanam-2019,’ the National Seminar on Management of Infertility in Ayurveda, organized by Amrita School of Ayurveda, which is part of the renowned Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham.
Let me at the outset, compliment the Amrita School of Ayurvedafor organizing this National Seminar on a topic that raises a major concern of humanity. As an institution guided by the vision and blessings of Sadguru Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, Amrita School of Ayurveda has been maintaining an impressive academic track record in the 15 years of its existence. I am informed that this institution, which offers Under Graduate and Post Graduate training in nine specialties of Ayurveda, is also a centre for doctoral research since 2014.
Today's Seminar has great relevance, since over 27 million couples in India are known to be suffering due to infertility. According to researchers, obesity, stress, environmental and industrial pollution and many health issues are causing infertility, resulting in 10 to 14 percent of the Indian population requiring treatment. But, more worrying is a recent observation of the Indian council for Medical Research that a good number of our Health centres are not well equipped to treat infertility. This certainly calls for the involvement of the practitioners of different systems of Medicine in helping people to tide over issues related to infertility. A College for Ayrveda taking the lead in this matter is certainly laudable.
The history of indigenous Indian medical science is known to be as old as the Indus Valley Civilization. References to diseases, herbs and herbal cures have been found in the four Vedas, especially, Rig Veda. And, Atharva Vedahas many verses that glorify our medicinal herbs.
Though the mythological explanation to the origin of Ayurveda is popular, we know that Ayurveda has come a long way, modernizing itself and providing wellness to people not only in India but in other places too. Today, while discussing its application in the treatment of Infertility, we are aware that Ayurveda offers a wide range of medicaments and therapies for both male and female infertility. We also have many experienced healers who effectively manage the condition.
However, when we search the well known research Data bases, we find very few authentic journals or articles related to Ayurveda and Infertility. There are some instances of single case reports, but generally, the evidence base for Ayurveda's interventions remains weak and requires well-designed clinical trials.Therefore, it is the duty of the Ayurveda Fraternity to document the cases thoroughly and ensure they get printed in good indexed journals.
As we know, the Ayurveda approach to fertility strives first to improve the health of the patient so as to lead to a higher likelihood of pregnancy. ‘Vajeekarana Chikitsa,’ a prime speciality of Ayurveda, explains about the good quality of the Sperm and Ovum, which is required for the attainment of a healthy progeny. Apart from this, it offers various modern therapies for the management of male and female infertility.
But, surprisingly, such modern facilities in Ayurveda are not very popular because of the notion that the term 'modern' applies only to Allopathic stream of medicine. This situation can be changed only if we have more authentic avenues for research in Ayurvedic and other native systems of medicine.
I am happy that institutions like Amrita Centre for Advanced Research in Ayurveda [ACARA] are nurturing a better research culture in the academic environment of Ayurveda by enabling Post Graduate and Doctoral Research programs to generate high impact research publications. The Amrita Centre’s aim of providing a platform to facilitate dialogue between practitioners of biomedicine and Ayurveda for developing Integrative Medical Care guidelines is laudable.
As the Chancellor of the State universities, I have been encouraging our institutions to bring out more Research journals with the desired Impact Factor, so that our research work is made known to the world. The lack of proper documentation of research work can affect the growth of research in our universities. However, I am happy that ‘Prajnanam 2019’, which focuses on the theme Infertility and Ayurveda aims to systematically document different effective principles and managements for infertility in both males and females. The effective documentation of clinical success stories, structured clinical trials and existing reviews of literature will be of great help in taking the research work forward.
I feel that a seminar discussing infertility must also discuss ways of creating awareness about this health issue in society. It is known through surveys that only 45 per cent of couples visit a doctor when they are trying to conceive and only 1 per cent of infertile couples seek actual treatment. Sadly, many women are not even aware of the treatment facilities and many men refuse to undergo treatment. This situation can be changed only if institutions like Amrita School of Ayurveda engage in a campaign to build awareness in society by highlighting the problem and the solutions that can be offered to people suffering due to infertility.
I once again greet the delegates attending this Seminar and hope that the deliberations will help to improve the quality of our Ayurvedic interventions. I also compliment the organizers for conducting this function in a befitting manner.
Ellavarkkum Ente Aashamsakal
Thank You
Jai Hind
